Booked Out

This film is Glaswegian Bryan O’Neil’s brainchild, as well as being his first directorial debut.

Booked Out stars Mirren Burke as protagonist Ailidh, an aspiring illustrator with a passion for writing graphic novels, and a penchant for spying on her neighbours with the help of her polaroid camera. When Jacob (Rollo Weeks, The Little Vampire) moves into an apartment in the complex Ailidh lives in, she decides she must unravel the secret of whom Jacob is.

Enlisting the help of neighbour Mrs. Nicholls (Sylvia Syms, The Queen), a widow who dotes upon the ghost of her dead husband, Ailidh befriends Jacob, but soon realises there is another girl in his life – the mysterious Jacqueline (Claire Garvey). Ailidh and Jacob must confront Jacob’s deepest secrets, before they can follow their hearts. As Mrs. Nicholls says, ‘sometimes the hardest decisions are the easiest to make.’

The film looks to be everything it promises – quirky, comedic, dramatic and uniquely British. The film’s trailer does a wonderful job at portraying the different elements in the film – from Ailidh trailing after Jacob with her camera in hand, to Mrs. Nicholls desperately crying out for Ailidh because Mr. Nicholls ‘has had a fit’, to Jacob putting a towel around a dripping wet Jacqueline, to a wonderful lindy hop scene.

Though the movie was originally supposed to be released sometime last year, it was pushed back for numerous reasons. It is now set to be released on March 12, this year. Bryan O’Neil will be travelling to certain indie cinemas in the country with a few of the actors, and hosting Q&A sessions at some screenings of the film. At the moment, O’Neil and producer Sam Alani are working with an American film company to get the film released in the States but there is no final word yet as to its American release. There is also no news on the film being released in any other country.

With an original soundtrack written entirely for the film, a superb script and a wonderful line up of UK actors, Booked Out looks set to be a hit, even if just in the indie film scene.

And I, for one cannot wait to see it, even if it won’t be released in Australia.

References:
The film’s official site
The film’s official facebook page
Bryan O’Neil’s blog